Trend File: High-Glam Silver Makes Its Mark

The red carpet at this week’s MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs), featured its share of zany—and also unusually prim—fashion.

But as jewelry watchers, we were most struck by the overwhelming number of ultraglamorous, white metal jewelry pieces that popped up on music’s biggest stars (in case you missed it, here’s our full VMAs jewelry roundup).

While yellow gold remains in high demand at fine jewelry stores, white metals, which have long dominated in bridal, are seeing a resurgence in the fine fashion category.

More evidence that the pendulum is swinging: hyper-hip NYC jewelry brand AuRate is poised to debut its first full collection of silver pieces this fall. And Tiffany & Co.’s classic silver pieces by Elsa Peretti are currently enjoying a renaissance and selling well with 2.0 jewelry retailers, including Stone & Strand.

Still, it’s not likely to be a complete takeover on the scale of yellow gold’s total fashion reign in the early part of this decade. Or white metal’s foothold in the late 1990s—an era when yellow gold felt so frumpy, Sarah Jessica Parker’s Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City was physically repulsed by the yellow gold–ness of the engagement ring her boyfriend Aiden chose for her.

But retailers can expect to see a rise in requests for silver, white gold, and even platinum in the coming years. Bonus: Silver’s price accessibility is bound to entice younger shoppers.

Bohemian-feeling silver jewelry, inspired by American Indian and Mexican design traditions, among others, has already earned a following in high-fashion circles.

But for most U.S. retail markets, I would bet on the hard glamour of streamlined, embellishment-free silver and white gold looks. Why? Pared-down pieces may prove an easy pivot from “daily gold” gold for your consumers. Nothing screams “I’m wearing silver!” like a squash blossom necklace (which I personally love).